Teach what you wish to receive!

Teach what you wish to receive!

Had an awesome experience out in California this past weekend working with two different groups of hairdressers.
The focus of both days where hands on design classes.
Both groups were advanced and as a result had to go in with my "A Game"
Honestly it had me pretty nervous so throughout the week preparing for the trip I practiced alot!
At the end of day two one of the girls in the group said
"we are all so glad that we came today"
and went on to say that they had all called each other.
They had discussed whether it would be a waste of time.
They all laughed, and I was relieved to hear that they where pleasantly surprised.
The truth is, on both days the design that we did was way better than the ones that we had practiced..

After the weekend I was reflecting on exactly what it was that made the weekend so inspiring and successful.
I came to the conclusion that it was because my nervous anticipation had fueled me to take it to the next level, a new personal best!
Combine that with the fact that I felt responsible to teach the group something new and inspiring.
So far this week at the salon I have been living on the adrenaline from the weekend and giving my clients the benefit of the creative aftermath!
Stay With Me this is going somewhere!!

When was the last time that you where nervous doing a haircut or color?
If you have been doing this as long as I have that's probably been a long time!
Many of us come to work and "day in and day out" get into a comfort zone with the people that we service.
For many salon professionals this can lead us straight into a big rut!
Ever felt like that before? My guess is probably.. that's kinda how it works on planet earth!

I have touched on this same thing before:
http://ibeautifydotnet.blogspot.com/2010/05/hairdresser-burnout.html


I have taken notice that many of us seasoned professionals are greedy with our knowledge and skills!
Most are unwilling to share by going out to beauty schools and teaching a class or even just sharing a technique with some of our less experienced coworkers.
To not share your gift with others is a tragedy!
When we share or teach someone we get better at the very thing that we are teaching!
It also takes us out of our comfort zone and puts us on edge which in turn brings out our best.
And lets not forget ! you were learning once too, and your co-workers have probably introduced you to a thing or two...
so even you are:
"standing on the shoulders of giants" as they say..
So if your finding yourself in a rut or just looking for some inspiration?

Just remember this, teach that which you wish to receive!

ibeautify.net the stylist notebook

Hey Salon Owners!! Listen up!

Your stylist's want to work hard!!
Just ask them!

Every day I spend time brainstorming and consulting with Salon Professionals and Salon owners.
Much of that time, feels like a "He said - She said" therapy session!
Most of the time the stylist's and owners are simply complaining about each other.. The best (or worst) part is the complaints are exactly the same:

From the stylists:
"The Owner doesn't care"
"She is so negative"
"they don't motivate me"
"the owner is jealous because I'm busier than her"
"all she wants is to make money off of my hard work"
"The owner won't advertise"
" there is no training here"
and the one that always makes me laugh inside "If I leave this place would close!"

From the salon owner's it's something like this:
"The people that work here don't care"
"Their not motivated"
"They won't act like a team"
"they won't dress professional"
"I'm tired of training people and they just leave"
"They just want me to hand them business without working for it"
and of course... "I want them to care about this business as much as I do"

And the list for both could go on..

Unfortunately whenever asked if they have talked to the other about their concern's the answer is, most of the time.. you guessed it..... NO!

You see the whole thing is just a big misunderstanding!
The truth is most people generally want to do a good job.
Isn't that true? Think about it, when was the last time that heard someone say,

"when I start a career, I'm gonna do a terrible job".
Most of the time people are not aware (owners and employees) of what is truly expected of them.
So, we go on doing what we think we should and never know what the other is thinking.
Many times, by the time we find it's too late. So how do we avoid this?

"Go In Asking"
Start setting time aside to at least once a month to communicate with each member of your staff.
Rebuilding rapport and trust with your staff and beginning to open up lines of communication on issues that may be on their mind.
At the Gene Juarez Salon, the Management team has a motto "Go In Asking", meaning if you want to know if your staff has something on their mind...Just Ask!

What we permit we promote
Generate some clarity on expectations and goal setting.
People want to know what is expected of them.
This is especially important for newer professionals in our industry.
They need guidance on what skills to focus on and how long is should take them to achieve certain benchmarks.
If an employee or owner is unaware of an expectation that we have of them they will assume that what they are doing is OK.
We need to be clear about the guidelines and behavior's that are acceptable in our salon from the start, the longer that we let it go, the harder it is to reform.



Appreciate yourself and your staff for their individuality.

How do each persons unique strengths and weaknesses add to your salon culture.
Identify the opportunities you have to grow together and what could you be working on to better yourselves and the business.

Schedule time out from behind the chair

(even if it's just 2 or 3 hours per week) to check in with your staff and give them your attention towards planning their growth and development
If we stay focused, as my pal Randy Kunkel says "Grow people for a living, and do hair for fun!!"

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Sometimes, it takes two!

Have you ever had someone in your life who made the work you do seem to have a deeper purpose and meaning?
Isn't it safe to say that we have all been inspired by someone at one time or another?
For the past 10 years much of the inspiration that has really kept me most excieted has come from working with our future industry professionals!

Do you remember your first few years in the business?
How excited were you when you did your first haircut on your own?
Do you remember how nervous you were ?
Well I sure do....
However that feeling does not last forever and thank goodness for that !

Eventually we all develop our skill and self confidence.
Unfortunatly for alot of us, a routine can become a rut!
Well that's what happened to me, but just then "she" walked in!

Her name was Elizibeta Frangoni, and she applied to an open stylist assistant position I had in the local paper. She was not living here legally yet, but at the time I was overworked and really needed an extra set of hands.
The rest of the truth is that she had already been a hairdresser in Italy for some years, she and her husband Tony had just come over and where staying with some friends at the time.
Looking for new opportunity in a new land, Elizibeta spoke about three words of english but the way that girl could finish hair had no language barrier!

It was amazing how over the next few months we where able to mesh our style and could effectively service so many more people in a day.
With the two of us always focusing on the guest, customer service was off the charts!!
Feeding off each other, our creativity grew stronger than ever and as a result work was more fun than it had been in years.

The increse in income was not to complain about either, during that time Elizibeta was working on a cosmetology license in the states and getting better and better with her english.
After about eight months she was able to begin to work on clients for herself and by that time I had gotten so used to working with another person that I decided to go to the hairschool that I attended and begin to recruit my next partner!

Bringing someone in fresh out of school was a little different than working with Elizibeta, however it was equally as exciting.
To work with a person who is in the infancy of a career, watch them light up every day with the new and exciting things they were learning.
Additionally by getting a fresher perspective on things inspired me to try new things when working on my clients whose hair I had been doing for years.

It was awesome!

I was enjoying work even more than I ever had, but what happened next, I was really not expecting.
Over the next couple of years I continued to help new sylist's grow their careers never really thinking that I would soon have one of the most profitable salons in town.
Now the issue of recruiting new staff was nearly gone.
I had more resume's than I could handle!
We had grown a culture of self motivated stylists who kept the "good of the salon" at the forefront.

OK OK, I can hear some of you thinking.

"I'm already too busy to take time to train someone else"
or
"My clients will never let someone else work on them"

What i say to you is GET OVER IT !! :)
If you really believe no one else can do hair the way you can, then your name must be Vidal Sassoon!
Wait until you give your clients a chance to feel the customer service from two professionals at once.
Two people applying a color get's it done twice as efficiently!
Two people to brainstorm new ideas, and the list goes on!
The most important thing is you go from being a hairdresser to mentor.
Something happens when it's not just yourself that you are looking out for but the growth and development of others, word begins to spread.

A cause, set in motion.

For my business this was the best thing ever did.
If your stuck in a rut in your career, this may be the next step for you.
If you are already one of the those who has been responsible for training and growing our future leaders, we congratulate you!

Finally, If you are thinking of taking on a new associate here is an idea on how to find that potential new employee:

Go and volunteer to teach a class at a local hair school. It does'nt have to be long.. just an hour or so, and after the class there will always be a few interested applicants who will want to stay around and talk.

Once you have chosen a new associate, remember continuing their education is a marathon not a sprint.
Don't overwhelm yourself thinking you have to teach them everything in one day.
Begin with small stuff like

"these are the tool's we will need for setup of a color process"
and
"this is the way we greet our clients"

Then schedule one "class" per week or every other week.
It will not be long before your associate will be well trained in all that they need to be.
Don't forget to spend time teaching them client communication and sales skills.
They will need these vital skills if they are to be successful long term.
And most importantly Have Fun!!
The more fun you have while teaching, the happier your associate will be.

Good luck until next time!

Check out our web app and iPhone app to help stylists make more money behind the chair:
http://www.ibeautify.net

sharpen your saw

Heard a story once about a man sawing down a tree in the woods. He was sawing for a long time and not making much progress. Another man passing by says to him:

"Sir you seem to be working for a long time and not making much progress. Why don't you stop and sharpen your saw?"

The man sawing is insulted, he responds:

"Can you not see? I am too busy sawing you dummy!"

Many of us get so busy, that we sometimes forget to stop and ask ourselves if what we are doing is working for us.
Is it still inspiring us?
Are we getting the results from our actions that we set out to get?
Do our habits make sense or are they leading us into a rut?

Today a busy salon professional can service well over 1200 clients a year and never take time to "stop and sharpen their saw".
Industry shows can be fun, inspiring and can be a great way to expose yourself to whats out there.
Once we get a taste for the type of "sharpening" that is right for us we can take the next step and attend an intensive workshop.
Workshops can range from one day to a week or more.
You can also attend an advanced academy that put on by anyone from Vidal Sassoon to Martin Parsons! With all that is available to us in this industry today Burnout should not be an option. Even if you are a veteran in this trade, it can sometimes be tempting to say "been there, done that". However, when I hear people say that it makes me feel sorry for their clients and the people who they work with!!
So, this is your challenge!!
Find ten classes or retreats that you would like to attend. Research them. Then narrow them down to at least 2 that you are willing to attend over the next 14 months. Next mark the time out of your salon and BUY A TICKET!! Preferably something you have to travel to!! Mark Twain said " Travel is fatal to ignorance, bigotry, and self centerdness." Get out of town!! Get out of your comfort zone!! And kiss that RUT Good-by!!

Here are a few suggestions on where to start. This should get a Pandora's box opened for ya!!

Martin Parsons seminars
Trevor Sorbie
Vidal Sassoon Academy
TiGI Academy
Redken Exchange NYC
Scott Cole and Melissa Yamaguchi
Irvine Rusk
Michael Della Penna
Chris Baran
Sam Villa
Carmondy Harmon
Michael Cole
Geno Stampora
Frank Gambuzza
Behind the Chair
Susie Fields Carter
Eric Fisher
NAHA
The Salon Association
Dom and Teri Gardino
Boho Artistic team
Scott Bentley and the B-Concept artistic team
British Hairdresser of the year
Wolrd hair Congress
Noah Hatton
Albe Mulcahy

And to help manage your new-found success on the business side check out the iBeautify.net stylist notebook
Organization and planning built for hairdressers by hairdressers.
www.ibeautify.net